Monday, March 31, 2008

I'm not going to even stop and doubt Spiezio's signing. Frank Wren has proven that he can do no wrong. I just think it's hilarious that LaRussa can be a drunk embarassment and still have a job in St. Louis while Spiezio does the same and he gets the boot. Well, Spiezio did wreck his car in someone's yard, and he left the scene of an accident but c'mon now ... throwing up in your neighbor's home AND beating the crap out of him? -- we've all done that at least once. And if you haven't, you should definitely put it on the things-to-do-before-you-die list.

Right now the Braves are losing 5-4. I know it's extremely early in the season but the bullpen looks a bit shaky.UPDATE: Dinger off Acosta. 8-4. %#@!!!UPDATE 2: I'm glad I didn't stay up for that mess of a game.

QUICK PROMO:Kyle over at The Tomahawk is running a great site full of Braves news. It's created by Braves fans for Braves fans. Make sure to head over there and bookmark it.

So the Braves lost 3-2. I didn't catch much of the game but I did see McCann get thrown out at 2nd. The season has officially started: McCann is slow, Chipper and Tex swung big bats, and the bullpen blew it in the 9th. Huzzah!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Those are the words from SI.com fantasy preview:Love this guy. Johnson is a complete and well-balanced player hitting at the top of a good lineup, and [...] he can be a cog on a championship-caliber fantasy roster.

So why the bleep are Braves players getting drafted so low in fantasy leagues?

In fantasy or reality, the Braves are severely underrated. While drafting my teams in six separate fantasy leagues (don't judge me, you're in more leagues than I am) I noticed that, except for Mark Teixeira, most Braves players are getting drafted very, VERY low.

Chipper put up MVP-type numbers last year and is getting drafted around the 4th or 5th round. McCann is probably the best offensive catcher in the NL and is getting no respect along with BFF Frenchy.

From ESPN.com:- Jeff Francoeur, OF, Braves. In today's sabermetric-obsessed game, it's hard to find a fantasy owner who trusts a free swinger. You'll hear them recall the days of Rob Deer, who could belt 30 home runs but otherwise kill your team batting average with their strikeout-prone ways. Still, while most free swingers wind up doomed to that kind of career path, there are exceptions to the rule. Vladimir Guerrero and Alfonso Soriano, for instance, are truly special hitters, and Francoeur, with the similar athleticism he brings to the table, fits that classification.

Another guy is Smoltz. Sure he is old, bald as a cue ball, and was recently placed on the 15-day DL... but the dude can pitch.

- John Smoltz, SP, Braves. It's not so much that no one gives Smoltz due credit; it's that they don't give him enough credit, at least not in fantasy. The baseball pundits are already chattering about Smoltz's Hall of Fame chances, but in fantasy, it's constantly heard that "He's old." "He's brittle." "He's bound to decline someday." Fantasy owners love chasing upside, which is why guys like Felix Hernandez, Scott Kazmir and Ben Sheets got drafted ahead of him in the preseason, but aren't they all every bit as risky as Smoltz at his age?

Saturday, March 8, 2008

To commemorate the return of Lefty McOutsidecorner, I dug up a couple of old books Tommy wrote back in the glory days. Yeah, I had no idea he's an author either but they are selling for under $1 over at Amazon.com.

Something that really surprised me was the Louisville Slugger website. Along with big boppers like Manny Ramirez and A-rod is our very own Mark Kotsay. His profile page makes him look pretty good and I'm sure he'll make good use of those bats hitting in the 8th spot. Not to be outdone, Frenchy has also put his face out there on the L.S. team.

Matt Diaz has no glove or bat deal like any other platooning left fielder. Soon my patient Matty.... soon